Dr. Masaru Emoto

Jemini Wild invites us to strip down, break out the loofah, and engage all five senses with a ceremonial shower…

Alla Kostromichova by Sølve Sundsbø for Vogue Nippon, May 2010

Think about the last time you showered. Removing your clothes, adjusting the water to the perfect temperature, the sound of it rushing from the faucet … this might be the only solitary time you get all day. Why shouldn’t you make this precious time underneath the showerhead into a personal ceremony?

Ritual baths are all the rage—but can take hours to prep, requiring all kinds of special “ingredients.” Not to mention the time actually soaking it in!

Doubting whether a loofah and a bottle of conditioner can help you create a similarly mystical experience? Consider how water carries energy (check out the work of Dr. Masaru Emoto). Water molecules actually respond to words and music—creating beautiful crystalline shapes, like snowflakes, when words like “love” and “gratitude” are used. Imagine … a waterfall of love in your bathroom!

Water is the source of life itself. Cultures all over the world revere it for its healing properties. From the ancient Romans’ giant community bathhouses, to baptisms and Native American rituals, the act of bathing has had a long history of ritual and magic. And as the attention brought to the Dakota Access Pipeline has reminded us all, it is our duty to truly honor the waters of the Earth.

Ceremonial Showering is an opportunity to reconnect with this magical element in our modern lives and take a cleansing power-pause. Even better, when we show up for ourselves in these small ways, it allows us to show up more powerfully in the world. Read on for a simple ceremonial showering ritual…

This month we are also honoring Pisces season by inviting all our Moon Club members to join us in a 30-day Water Healing Ritual. Discover more here!

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1. Set an intention before your foot even hits the tub. Hold the intention in your mind or say it out loud, and let the water carry your words into the Universe. Take long, deep inhale and exhales as you undress and turn on the water.

Some “Shower Intentions” to get you started: “May I feel stimulated & enlivened.” “May I feel warmth, rest, and rejuvenation.” “May I feel invigorated & refreshed.” Or how about: “May this water wash away all negativity from my day.”

2. Set the mood with some meditative drums or the Acoustic Concentration station on Spotify. Put drops of eucalyptus oil in a small dish in your bathroom—the steam will disperse it and a natural opening happens in the warm water. Yes, your skin actually relaxes! Or try one of my favorite mists, Jurlique Rosewater, or Zum Frankincense & Myrrh, to set the mood.

3. Shift the Routine. If you always start the water and then take off your clothes, try removing your clothes first. Routine lulls the brain to sleep and these small shifts will signal to your subconscious that something special is happening. If you always use a loofah, switch to a wash cloth or sponge. Buy a new shower curtain for a change of scenery.

4. Tune In to the sound of the water. Notice how the droplets sparkle. Where it hits your body first. Is it the curve of your calf, the pebbles of your toes, or the dip of your collar bone?

5. Stimulate Your Senses with texture and smell. Really feel that loofah, the squishiness of it. What color is the soap? Mine’s green—the same shade as pistachios and praying mantises. What things from the natural does your soap remind you of?

6. Receive. Above all, let the water flowing over you help you become conscious of your enhanced ability to receive. Many people have aha-moment in the shower. Open up. Let it in. You may be surprised by your revelations!

Jemini Wild is a Visionist, Pray-er, and Magic-Maker. She believes the most important relationship is the one we have with ourselves, and that digging in the mess that makes us human is the most fun way to spend a day. Follow her on Instagram and Facebook for even more beautiful humanness.

In herlatest Temple of Venus column, Elyssa Jakim embraces her inner mermaid with a guide to water magic…

Water is perhaps my number one healer and teacher, since I have experienced so much magic with this element. Many moons ago, in deep meditation, I heard clearly: “You are a water witch.” That was my title.

Do you feel at home in water? Do you ever think you must have been a mermaid? Are you thirsty to step into your water witchiness? Are you a water witch too?

Last fall, I journeyed to the Pacific Northwest and found myself in the company of some serious water stewards—more water witches! At the Pacific Women’s Herbal Conference, Lorraine Bayes held a water ceremony and I felt as though I were home. Then in Oregon, I found the magical Camilla Blossom Bishop through word of mouth. When we met, she told me she was teaching a course about how to be a water healer. I was being led back to water again.

With Camilla, I learned how to conduct a water ceremony, and how to fully honor this element. The capstone of this experience was a ritual in which I floated in a chemical free salt pool that held water from around the world. Once again, I felt that I was home. I emerged radiant and resplendent. And now it’s your turn.

Here’s my guide to water magic, whatever element you call your own.

:: DRINK LOVE WATER ::

Here’s a message for you, channeled from Venus herself (remember she was born of the water):

Charge your water with love! In 1999, Dr. Masaru Emoto famously taught the world that water molecules hold the vibration of the thought one applies them. If you hold water with the intention of love, water crystals make a beautiful shape. If you hold it with fear or anger, they make jaggedy, almost viscerally painful shapes.

The sum of this is: we drink what we think! So, how can you love up your water?

Here’s what Camilla taught me: put the water in a beautiful vessel. Breathe into your heart and feel its loving sweetness. Imagine the love from your heart moving into the pitcher or cup. Imagine that this water is being fully purified into its highest, most optimal, healthy state. Now, get creative! Sing to your water, listen to beautiful music, add flower essences and crystals. Then drink up the nectar of life. Take joyful sips. This is very subtle, but your water will taste better and it will fill your body, soul, and mind with love. Water is thought to be the first medicine, so let yours heal you.

:: BATHE IT IN ::

When I was a little girl, I used to dunk my head in the bath water, sing, and swish my hair to and fro, believing I was a mermaid. Past life recall perhaps?

Bathing is an ancient practice for health, rejuvenation and beauty. The tranquility and solitude of the bath make it a perfect way to practice self-love and self-care. The bath lets us reset and get to know ourselves very deeply. I like to think of water as feeling—and as such, bathing allows us to pay homage to our emotional state. The water holds us like the womb. It also helps us to know our sensual and sensitive sides.

As far as practical magic goes, bathing is one of the most effective aura cleansers there is. The water we bathe in holds our emotions, thoughts, and physical tension, which are able to release down the drain. If you think you’ve been picking up a lot of other people’s stuff, or just want to clear and reset, put sea salt, Epsom salt, and/or baking soda into your bath and let yourself be cleansed.

You can make your bath time even more powerful by creating a theme for your bath. One example is Mermaid Paradise: Put hibiscus and lily flowers in your bath with sea stones, shells, blue and green candles, and your favorite essential oil. Or how about a Yummy Goddess Heart Bath? Rose petals, rose water, rose quartz, Himalayan sea salts, soft tea-light candles and music.

When you’re ready to drain your bath, see anything and everything that’s not serving you wash away.

:: GET BLESSED ::

One way to practice being a water witch, a water alchemist, and a true mermaid, is by helping to heal the waters of the Earth. The gorgeous thing here is that when you bless water you are being blessed in return. It’s a beautifully symbiotic relationship.

How can you experience this? Visit a body of water, and put your intention of love and healing into the water source. This means you can sing to the water. You can tell it your hopes and dreams. You can put loving words into it like “peace, beauty, love, tranquility, and gratitude.” You can make a wish into the water. You can tell your water source how beautiful she looks. You can bring her flowers or another such gift. It sounds like what we do with the drinking water, right? It’s all one, my darling.

Another way to bless water is to find a water deity you connect to—I love Yemaya, Venus (duh!), and mermaids. Call upon this divine being and ask to connect with her. Breathe all your love into the water with the help of your divine team.

Whatever your method, after you send your love into the water, stand back as something miraculous happens. The water will send love back to you. This might feel like a wave of love or positive energy. Or it might feel like nothing at all. But it will happen. Your subtlest of energies will sense it. And because “water is feeling,” don’t be surprised if you come over quite emotional.

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In embracing water magic, I salute you on your journey back to your mermaid self. May these suggestions open the door to your own discovery of who you really are. Report back with your tales!

Elyssa will be holding a water ceremony at our Numinous “Re-write Your Love Story” retreat at Maha Rose North. Book with a friend before June 17 and you’ll each qualify for $50 of— email [email protected]ose.com to enquire about this early bird discount.